Crowds line up early to snap up free trees at Jupiter giveaway

JUPITER — The tiny trees in three-gallon pots came with promises of abundant fruit in the years to come and shade — a priceless commodity in a South Florida summer set to scorcher.

Sponsored by the Niagara Bottling company, and in conjunction with the Arbor Day Foundation and Community Greening, about 170 trees were adopted by residents who drove to Jupiter from as far as Boca Raton on Saturday, May 18, for the woody perennials that included soursop, tamarind, green buttonwood and paradise trees.

Josh Weiner, communications director for the nonprofit organization Community Greening, said people began lining up for the trees about 90 minutes ahead of the 10 a.m. open time at the El Sol neighborhood center in Jupiter, eager to plant something that provided so much benefit to the environment and their pantry.

Soursop trees, also known as guanabana, are popular in the Caribbean and have a spiky-skinned fruit with a custard-like consistency that tastes like a combination of strawberry, apple and citrus, according to the University of Florida. Tamarind trees produce a bean-shaped fruit with a pulpy inside that tastes like apricots, dates and lemons.

"The demand for trees is enormous," Weiner said. "These are all going to people's homes and that will increase the tree canopy. As you can see, it's already extremely hot, and it's just May."

Increasing the tree canopy to provide shade and reduce the impact of urban heat islands is one of the key goals of Community Greening, which is based in Boca Raton. Urban heat islands are hot spots of concrete and asphalt that absorb heat and hold it into the night, upping daytime and nighttime temperatures.

A 2019 study by NOAA and the City of West Palm Beach that mapped urban heat islands found differences in the "feels like" temperature, or heat index, of up to 30 degrees depending on whether areas were shaded.

"These are going right in our backyard," said George Rosario, who drove to Jupiter from West Palm Beach to pick up two trees. "We love nature and we love trees. We stopped everything we were doing to come here when we heard about it."

Community Greening has given away an estimated 5,000 trees this year with as many as 20,000 given away since 2017. Weiner said the three-gallon trees that they give away for residential planting would cost about $85 if bought in a store.

While the trees on Saturday were limited to four varieties, other giveaways have included jackfruit, mango, avocado and starfruit trees. The next tree giveaway is June 15 starting at 10 a.m. at 1121 Lucerne Ave., Lake Worth Beach.

Mark Madonia, assistant plant director for Niagara Bottling in Jupiter, said he was surprised people lined up so far in advance of the event opening.

"The company puts a lot of value in giving back to the community," Madonia said.

Kimberly Miller is a journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate and how growth affects South Florida's environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. Help support our local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Community Greening, Niagara Bottling give away free trees in Jupiter